Political Psychology and Media Influence: Key Theories and Concepts

Somatic Marker Hypothesis

Bodily emotions ("gut feelings") unconsciously guide political and moral decision-making.

Affective Intelligence

Theory proposing two emotional systems—dispositional (routine, positive) and surveillance (anxiety-based)—that shape political learning and action.

Cognitive Appraisal Theory

Suggests emotions result from people's cognitive evaluations of events; emotion follows interpretation.

Hot Cognition

The idea that all political objects are emotionally charged, so affective reactions occur before rational thought.

Emotion vs. Cognition

Emotion is fast, intuitive, and bodily; cognition is deliberate and reasoned—both interact in politics.

Dispositional vs. Surveillance System

Dispositional system supports habitual political behavior; surveillance system activates learning under threat or uncertainty.

Anger

Increases motivation for action and blame but can reduce openness to new information.

Anxiety

Promotes information-seeking and careful evaluation of politics under uncertainty.

Fear

Heightens vigilance and defensive attitudes; often leads to support for protective policies.

Enthusiasm

Encourages turnout and participation, reinforcing prior preferences.

Blind Retrospection

Voters punish or reward incumbents for events unrelated to government performance (e.g., natural disasters, sports results).

Genetics and Political Participation

Political engagement and turnout partly influenced by heritable traits and predispositions.

Civic Duty

The belief that one ought to vote or participate as a moral or social obligation.

Stress and Political Participation

Higher chronic stress or cortisol levels reduce likelihood of voting and civic engagement.

Cortisol

A stress hormone that, when elevated, is linked to lower political participation.

Information Shortcuts

Cognitive heuristics like party ID, ideology, or endorsements used to simplify complex political decisions.

Opinion Leaders

Informed individuals who interpret and pass on political information to others, guiding less informed voters.

Candidate Traits

Personal qualities such as competence, honesty, and empathy that influence voter evaluations.

Party Identification

Long-term psychological attachment to a political party; strongest predictor of vote choice.

Running Tally Model of Party ID

Party ID evolves as people update opinions based on retrospective evaluations of party performance.

Perceptual Screen

Party ID filters how individuals perceive and interpret political information (motivated reasoning).

Turnout

The proportion of eligible citizens who actually vote in an election.

Field Experiment

Research conducted in real-world settings using random assignment to test causal effects (e.g., voter mobilization).

Social Pressure

Voter behavior influenced by knowing others may observe or judge their participation (e.g., "Your neighbors voted" mailers).

Mobilization

Efforts to get supporters to take political action, especially voting.

Persuasion

Attempts to change people's political attitudes, beliefs, or opinions.

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

Two paths to persuasion—central (deep processing, lasting change) and peripheral (surface cues, temporary change).

Persuasion in Parallel

Multiple persuasion processes can operate simultaneously (emotional and rational cues together).

Consistency Theory (Mobilization)

People strive for consistency between commitments and actions—pledging to vote increases actual turnout.

Conformity

Changing behavior or beliefs to match group norms or peer expectations.

Compliance

Behavior change in response to direct requests or social influence.

Communicator (Persuasion)

The source or messenger; credibility and attractiveness affect persuasion.

Communication (Persuasion)

The message itself; framing, tone, and emotional appeals matter.

Target (Persuasion)

The audience; characteristics like prior beliefs and attention determine susceptibility.

Central Route

Persuasion through thoughtful consideration of arguments; leads to enduring attitude change.

Peripheral Route

Persuasion via superficial cues (e.g., visuals, slogans); effects are short-term.

Positive Ads

Promote a candidate's image or record to build support.

Negative Ads

Attack opponents' character or policies to create doubt or demobilize.

Contrast Ads

Compare both candidates' positions or traits directly.

Mobilization Hypothesis

Negative ads can increase engagement by heightening interest and anger.

Demobilization Hypothesis

Negative ads reduce turnout by increasing cynicism and discouragement.

Analogic Perspective Taking

Asking people to recall personal experiences to empathize with others, used effectively in Broockman & Kalla (2016).

Hostile Media Effect

Perception that neutral media coverage is biased against one's own side.

Episodic vs. Thematic Frames

Episodic frames focus on individual cases; thematic frames emphasize broader social context.

Media Bias

Systematic slant in news coverage—through selection, tone, or emphasis—that favors certain perspectives.

Media Usage Patterns in the US

Americans consume political information mainly via TV and increasingly social media, often selectively.

Framing Effect

How information is presented shapes the weight of different considerations in opinion formation.

Priming

Media emphasis on certain issues increases their importance in evaluating political figures.

Gatekeeping

Editors or producers deciding which stories are selected for coverage.

Coverage Bias

Unequal quantity or prominence of coverage among topics or candidates.

Statement Bias

Differences in tone or favorability within coverage.

Accessibility Model of Framing

Frames work by making specific considerations more accessible in memory.

Importance Change Model of Framing

Frames alter how important people perceive certain considerations to be.

Availability (Framing)

The presence of relevant information in memory for interpretation.

Accessibility (Framing)

How easily information is retrieved from memory when evaluating issues.

Applicability (Framing)

The relevance or fit of a consideration to a given issue.

Moderators of Framing Effects

Individual traits (knowledge, strength of attitudes) that determine how strongly frames influence opinions.

Priming Effects

When exposure to certain issues changes the criteria people use to judge leaders or policies.

Satisfice

Making "good enough" political decisions rather than optimal ones due to limited information or effort.

Priming vs. Framing

Priming affects what people think about; framing affects how they think about it.

Priming Hypothesis

People rely more on considerations made accessible or salient by recent exposure.

Infotainment Priming

Entertainment news can subconsciously make certain political traits or issues more salient.

Subliminal Priming

Exposure to stimuli below conscious awareness influencing attitudes or choices.

Informational Appeals

Persuasive messages emphasizing facts or evidence rather than emotion.

Fake News

Intentionally false or misleading information presented as legitimate news.

Political Content on Social Media

Political posts and news shared online that influence opinions and engagement.

Echo Chamber

Environment where people are mainly exposed to like-minded views, reinforcing existing beliefs.

Heterogeneous vs. Homogeneous Network

Diverse networks expose people to cross-cutting views; homogeneous ones reinforce polarization.

Social Media Comments & Misinformation

User comments can spread and legitimize false information, shaping perception.

Mobilization on Social Media

Online cues (friends voting, events) that encourage political participation and turnout.